Few things delight quite like sitting down on the sofa with a beautiful new cookbook, giving the spine a good crack and thumbing through those glossy, yet-to-be-sauce-splattered pages. These new and upcoming food books are worthy of your coffee table; they’re vibrant, design focussed, and they make a good read when actual cooking isn’t on the agenda.
A cookbook dedicated to everyone – with techniques for everything from roasting and stir frying to pickling and infusing – a salad book that also features pizza and wine (as every good salad book should), a baking book that goes back to basics, and then steadfastly forward to transform the way you bake forever. We scoured dozens of books about food in our search for the most compelling reads, the best cooking instructions, the most beautiful recipes, the most delightful designs. Because who doesn’t judge a book by its cover?
Whether you’re on the hunt for weeknight dinner inspiration, are reeling in the face of an imminent gathering at your place, or simply fancy taking some time to refine and improve your cooking skills, our top picks have every situation covered. And, importantly, every book here has the coffee-table stylist in mind.
SHOP THE BEST FOOD COFFEE-TABLE BOOKS
Pasta by The Australian Women’s Weekly, $49.99, QBD Books
Get your homemade pasta game on with this beautifully photographed book that shines a light on the process of making pasta from scratch. There are basic pasta dough recipes, and step-by-step photographs and descriptions on how to fill and fold your own tortellini and ravioli, or cut your own pappardelle. Make each pasta’s perfectly paired sauce, from rich and meaty to creamy or laden with seafood or vegetables.
Desi Kitchen by Sarah Woods (Penguin Books), $39.27, Amazon
This beautiful cookbook unveils how British Indian food varies around the United Kingdom, depending on the migration history of the region. Author Sarah Woods traces Nepali influences in Kent to Punjabi cuisine in the Midlands. It’s a book to read in your favourite chair as much as it is one to cook from in the kitchen. Start with sticky mango chicken wings, or fish tacos in thepla flatbread, then read how the recipe evolved from Leicester’s gujurati hindus. Cook kottu roti from London’s Sri Lankans and Welsh rarebit with curry oil from Welsh bengalis. It’s a fascinating book about food from India, via England, ready to devour wherever you are.
First, Cream the Butter and Sugar by Emelia Jackson (Murdoch Books), $34, Booktopia
This pretty book is a reassuring guide for those of us who love cake – raise your hands. They say if we cook one recipe from a cookbook that is good going, and if that’s your situation then made the choc chip cookie recipe and live happily ever after. For more ambitious bakers, there’s the option of conquering an opera cake, a raspberry passionfruit tart or becoming a choux-master. This book is packed with advice for every level of home baker. But also, the illustrated cover of this book – hello styled coffee table – alone is worth the ticket price.
The Joy of Better Cooking by Alice Zaslavsky (Murdoch Books), $43.86, Amazon
There’s no exhausting Alice Zaslavsky, the cook behind this book promising life-changing skills and thrills for enthusiastic eaters. But we’d also be happy to sit back and let Alice do all the work while we read her beautiful words and ponder her colourful recipes. This book is happy giving weeknight dinners a lift, but it also looks just right sitting proudly on your coffee table.
Spanish at Home by Emma Warren (Smith Street Books), 49.99, QBD Books
It’s hard to know whether to put this book on your coffee table or hang it framed in your kitchen, so gorgeous is the cover. Who doesn’t want to bring the flavours and energy of inland mountainous regions and provinces of Basque Country and Catalonia, the glittering coastlines of the Mediterranean, and the Balearic Islands, home to dinner? This book celebrates the cuisine from someone who has immersed herself in it.
Plantbased by Alexander Gershberg (Smith Street Books), $42.35, Amazon
This new book sets out to lure those vegan curious amongst us, those wanting to eat more plants – be it grains, vegetables, pulses – who want to brighten up our plates with all the colours nature has to offer. This book, with its bold illustrated cover, will also brighten up your room, stat.
Salad Pizza Wine by the team behind Elena (Penguin Books), $51.99, Amazon
Pizza that’s actually good for you – learn how to make Elena’s naturally leavened dough – plus salad and vegetables that make the most of the seasons. There are recipes for meat and fish, desserts; it’s a choose your own adventure of cooking. But the results are packed with flavour and designed to make good gatherings and good times. This book is written in a self-deprecating, tongue-in-cheek style. It’s a blast from cover to cover and we couldn’t love it more. To be released in Australia in May 2023.
Mezcla by Ixta Belfrage (Penguin Books), usually $55, Angus Robertson
If the bright and bold colour-block cover doesn’t have you hooked – and there’s gold – inside you’ll discover a highlight reel from the co-author of bestselling Ottolenghi Flavour. This Mexican-fusion cookbook brings recipes for everyday eating with special occasion energy.
50 Easy Indian Curries by Penny Chawla (Smith Street Books), $29.25, Amazon
Never order takeaway again! Just kidding. But that’s how you feel when you pick up this book packed with easy Indian curries you actually want to eat. All the classics are in there, and the photography is clean, approachable, and worthy of the attention of the most discerning curry lovers. Plus, the cover brightens up the room and the day.
Very Good Salads by Shuki Rosenboim and Louisa Allan (Smith Street Books), $30.79, Amazon
Behind the owners of Very Good Falafel, a small bar-turned-Melbourne institution, comes Very Good Salads. And they are very, very good. This book is packed with Middle Eastern flavours that span share plates and salads destined to be shoved inside bread with tahini. Each salad makes use of the whole vegetable (a no-waste win), with classic and less-expected pairings such as watermelon salad with za’atar, radish and fried pita, or peaches, basil and hazelnut. There are recipes involving grilled leek with pomegranate, walnuts, spring onion, mint, dill and lemon zest. It’s frankly delicious. Put it out on display and just try to resist cooking from it every day.
Cult Sando by Jimmy Callaway (Harper Collins), $21.56, Amazon
There’s something bewitching in witnessing a chef pursuing and perfecting their craft. This is what chef Jimmy Callaway has achieved with Cult Sando, a tome filled with classic and modern recipes for the popular Japanese sandwich. In Japan, you’ll find sando everywhere: on convenience store shelves, Shinkansen menus and even vending machines. And now we can replicate the magic at home – turn out hambagu, kareraisu and korokke. We love the stunning photography and the kawaii konbini-themed graphic layout of this book. The recipes are approachable but elevated – think egg salad and pork katsu, but there are also fillings like mortadella, tofu or ice cream. Not a sandwich fan? Just look at the beautiful pages and have it on display next time a foodie visits. This one will impress.
The Australian Women’s Weekly Australia Bakes, $26.95, Amazon
When it comes to baking, there is nothing like the classics. This book is packed with the cakes, slices, biscuits, pies, bread and scones we all want the perfect recipe for. The Australian Women’s Weekly is known for testing and retesting their recipes so they actually work when we get them home. This beautiful book is a tribute to the best-in-show bakers across Australia.
